Discussion & Educator's Guide

Buddy Check
for Jesse

A facilitator's companion for screenings in schools, libraries, sports leagues, and community organizations across Canada.

Runtime
29:24
Recommended Age
Grade 8 / Age 13+
Discussion
30–60 minutes
Format
1920×1080 / 2K DCP

Contents

  1. About the Film
  2. Content Considerations & Safety
  3. Key Themes
  4. Before the Screening
  5. Post-Screening Discussion
  6. Activities & Extensions
  7. Taking Action
  8. Crisis Resources & Support
01

About the Film

Buddy Check for Jesse is a 29-minute documentary about a father, a son who is no longer here, and a community that decided to do something about it. After the loss of his son Jesse to suicide, Stu Gershman began a small ritual in a Victoria, BC hockey locker room: a coach-led conversation about mental health, marked by green hockey tape on every stick. That ritual has grown into a national program now reaching more than 18,000 youth athletes across Canada.

The film follows Stu as the program reaches Hockey Day in Canada and expands into Manitoba, where first responder Robyn Vandersteen takes it across new sports. Through their voices and the voices of young athletes, coaches, and clinicians, the film makes a quiet argument: that culture change in sport begins with the people kids already trust most.

02

Content Considerations & Safety

This film discusses suicide, grief, and mental health. It does not depict suicide on screen, and it follows safe-messaging best practices: no method, no means, focus on connection and recovery. Still, the subject matter requires care.

Before You Screen — Please

Have crisis resources visible and accessible before, during, and after the screening. Print the resource list on the last page of this guide and post it in the room. Identify a trusted adult or counsellor who is available for any participant who needs to step out or talk afterward.

Open the screening with a brief acknowledgement: "This film is about loss and about healing. If at any point you need to step out, you can. If you want to talk to someone, here is who is available."

Recommended Settings

  • Schools: Grade 8 and up. Best paired with a counsellor or mental-health professional present in the room.
  • Sports organizations: Coach- or staff-led, ideally as part of a season-long mental-health initiative rather than a one-off.
  • Libraries & community groups: Public screenings benefit from a brief introduction and a clearly identified support person.
  • Workplaces: EAP (Employee Assistance Program) or mental health practitioner involvement strongly encouraged.
03

Key Themes

  • Grief and meaning-making — How does a parent carry an unbearable loss? What does it mean to honour someone by acting?
  • Masculinity in sport — Locker rooms have long been spaces where boys are taught to perform toughness. What happens when they're invited to speak?
  • The role of the coach — Why do coaches occupy a unique position in a young athlete's life, and what responsibility does that carry?
  • Language as care — A central idea in the film: the next generation is finding new words for old feelings. What does "buddy checking" actually look like?
  • From private grief to public movement — How does an intimate family loss become a national program? What's lost and gained in the scaling?
  • Symbol and ritual — Green tape, coaches' chats, conversation cards. Why does a movement need objects?
04

Before the Screening

Take 5–10 minutes before the film to set the room. The goal is not to lecture but to make space.

Opening Questions

  1. What do you already know about mental health in sports?
  2. Who is someone — a coach, teammate, family member — that has been a "buddy" to you?
  3. What's something you wish people talked about more openly?
05

Post-Screening Discussion

Allow a beat of silence after the credits before opening discussion. Three minutes of quiet is not empty — it's necessary.

For All Audiences

  1. What moment in the film stayed with you the most? Why?
  2. Stu describes himself as wanting to "honour Jesse by helping someone else's kid." What does honour mean here, and how is it different from memorializing?
  3. Why do you think Stu chose a hockey locker room as the place to start? What is it about that space?
  4. Robyn says: "If our generation had that language, they would still be here." What language is she talking about? Where do you think it comes from?

For Young Athletes

  1. Carson says the film "really opened my eyes to how important this is." What did the film open your eyes to?
  2. What would it look like for your team to do a Buddy Check? Who would lead it? What might be hard about it?
  3. Have you ever wanted to check in on a teammate but didn't know how? What might have made it easier?

For Coaches & Educators

  1. What signals — visible or invisible — do you use to read your athletes' or students' wellbeing?
  2. How do you balance pushing for performance with checking in on the person?
  3. What's one specific thing you could carry from this film into your next practice, class, or shift?

For Families & Parents

  1. How do you talk to the young people in your life about hard feelings?
  2. What barriers exist in your own household to those conversations?
  3. Stu says that grief made him braver. Does that resonate with any losses in your life?
06

Activities & Extensions

The Buddy Check Letter

Each participant writes a short, private letter (5 minutes) to someone they want to check in on. They do not have to share it. They are invited — but never required — to actually send it. Provide envelopes.

Green Tape Pledge

For sports teams: end the session with each athlete taping a small piece of green tape to their stick, glove, helmet, or wrist. The tape is a private commitment to be a "buddy" to one specific person on the team that season.

The Language Inventory

In small groups (4–6), participants list every word or phrase they've heard for "I'm not okay" — slang, metaphors, silences. Discuss: which feel safe? Which feel limiting? What's missing?

Movement Mapping

Older students or community groups: research and map other peer-to-peer mental health movements (e.g., Bell Let's Talk, R U OK?, Headstrong). What's similar? What's distinct about Buddy Check for Jesse's locker-room model?

The Letter to Stu

Older audiences: write a letter to Stu Gershman as if you'd just watched the film. Not for grading, not for sending — just as a way of articulating what the film asked of you.

07

Taking Action

If your group is moved to do something, here are concrete next steps.

  • Bring the program to your team. Buddy Check for Jesse runs free of charge for sports teams across Canada. Visit buddycheckforjesse.com to sign up.
  • Donate to the Society. The program is run by a registered charity. Direct donations support kits, coach training, and outreach.
  • Host another screening. Pair this film with a follow-up event — a coach panel, a Q&A, a counsellor visit.
  • Share the resources. Make sure the crisis numbers below are visible in your locker room, classroom, library, or staff room.
  • Check in. Today. On one specific person. By name.
08

Crisis Resources & Support

If you or someone you know is struggling, free help is available 24 hours a day.

Canada — National

  • Talk Suicide Canada24/7 phone & text support 1-833-456-4566
  • Kids Help PhoneFor young people, 24/7 1-800-668-6868
  • Hope for WellnessIndigenous-led, multilingual 1-855-242-3310
  • Crisis Text LineText HELLO to 741741 Text 741741
  • 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis HelplineCall or text, 24/7 9-8-8
  • Wellness Together CanadaFree counselling and resources wellnesstogether.ca

If someone is in immediate danger, call 911. If you are unsure whether someone is at risk, ask them directly. Asking does not plant the idea — it opens the door.